SANTA CLARA, Calif. (WOOD) — Like Rome, the Detroit Lions weren’t built in a day. It took 31 years to get back to the NFC Championship game.

On Sunday, the Lions take on the San Francisco 49ers for the right to play in the Super Bowl.

In large part, the Lions made it to this game because they finally found the right people to lead the franchise.

There was a time not long ago when Lions fans were begging the Ford family to sell the team. Since the Super Bowl era began in 1967, Detroit had only made the playoffs 12 times in 57 years. The franchise had Hall of Fame talent like Barry Sanders and Calvin Johnson, but had only one playoff win to show for it.

Then along came owner Sheila Hamp.

“I mean, she told us exactly what she thought the issues were before, what she was looking for, what she wanted,” Lions head coach Dan Campbell said. “And that we were going to be tasked to handle it together as the GM and the head coach.”

One of Hamp’s first moves was to hire Brad Holmes as general manager.

Together, they made the bold choice to hire Campbell as head coach. At the time, the move raised a lot of eyebrows.

It did not start well: The Lions went winless in their first 11 games. But nobody panicked.

“I always wanted to prove (Hamp) right,” Campbell said. “That’s not an easy thing to do, to take a chance on somebody that nobody knows about or thinks deserves a shot.”

Even with the tough start, Holmes showed he had an eye for talent. His first draft class was paying immediate dividends. Penei Sewell stepped right in, and Amon-Ra St. Brown left fans wondering how so many NFL teams let him slip to the fourth round. Holmes’ first three draft classes provided Detroit with talent and depth it hadn’t had since the early ’90s.

“They call him the draft guru,” Lions defensive lineman Levi Onwuzurike said. “He brings guys in here with the same mindset, who want to come in here and win and work.”

“It’s awesome to see, if you look back, what it was like two years ago, what it was like last year when we almost made the playoffs, what it’s like now,” St. Brown said. “It’s a blessing.”

The Lions play the 49ers on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. ET.